Hantei Yugozohime
Hantei Yugozohime was the first Empress of Rokugan. With the help of the Lion and Dragon Clans, she brought about the downfall of the Gozoku. Family Yugozohime was the fifth of the seven children of the Emperor Hantei Kusada. Imperial Histories, p. 64 She was the eldest of his daughters. Imperial Histories, p. 48 The Gozoku Because of her father's acquiescence to the Gozoku, all of Hantei Kusada's children were fostered to different clans. The sons all went to the Crane, Phoenix, and Scorpion, to keep the prospective heirs close to the triad and to indoctrinate them in the ways and beliefs of the Gozoku. The daughters were fostered to other clans as political alliances in an attempt to solidify the power and standing of the Gozoku. Secrets of the Lion, p. 7 Way of the Wolf, pp. 25-27 Fostered to the Lion Clan Yugozohime at the age of eight was fostered to the Lion Clan in the year 432, decision her father had taken influenced by diplomats from the Dragon Clan. In 433 the Dragon Clan Champion Togashi Hikaru secretly contacted Yugozohime and her Lion hosts. He convinced the Lion's leaders that the Gozoku was dangerous and that subverting the Hantei's rule was blasphemous. The Lion's minds were changed from the passivity that they displayed during the Gozoku's rise shortly after the First War. They began training Yugozohime not only as a warrior, but as a true follower of Bushido and the principles of Hantei supremacy. Although the princess did not realize it, Hikaru was actually the Kami Togashi himself, and he had foreseen the impending doom of the Gozoku Alliance. Secret Love Yugozohime met there Akodo Kurojin, and they became friends. Rumors were spread that they had fallen in love to each other. Empress Upon her father's death in 435, Yugozohime's eldest brother, Hantei Soujiro, fostered to the Phoenix Clan, was brought to Otosan Uchi to claim the throne. At his coronation, however, Yugozohime appeared and challenged his right to lead Rokugan. Yugozohime killed her brother in a duel and took the throne for herself, becoming the empire's first Empress. With the military support of the Lion and Dragon Clans, and a refusal to submit to the Gozoku, the triad was shattered. Although no formal charges were recorded against its members, within a year most were either retired to monasteries or killed in duels. Yugozohime dismantled the political structure that led to the Gozoku's rise, delegating all of the power used by the Gozoku to rise to power to the Imperial families, especially the Otomo. The only remaining leader of the triad, Shiba Gaijushiko, was remained alive. He betrayed all his comrades because was a coward and he believed that the Empress mercy was all that kept him alive. Undone, by Shawn Carman and Rich Wulf She decreed that no army might move through the Plain of Fast Troubles ever again, so Otosan Uchi could not be threatened again by any army of the Great Clans. Clan War: Ravages of War, p. 16 Reign Yugozohime married Doji Usan who, according to legend, gave up the position of Emerald Champion to be her husband. Records did show that the ronin Mochiko did win the new Test of the Emerald Champion after Usan turned down the position, so there was credence to that story. The woman was the former Matsu Daimyo Matsu Mochihime, who had been made ronin by the Gozoku years ago. The couple had for daughters, Winter Court: Kyuden Kakita, p. 84 and Hantei Retsuhime was the eldest. Imperial Histories, p. 76 Demeanor As Empress she was an active and effective leader, controlling her courts with grace and charisma, and she swiftly came to be respected and admired throughout the Empire for her wisdom and power. Imperial Histories, p. 65 The Sentaku Tribunal was formed under her rule. Otosan Uchi:Book 2, p. 13 Battle of White Stag / Battle of Raging Seas Perhaps the most controversial decision of Yugozohime's reign (and one that was denied by Ikoma Historians) was her admittance of a group of gaijin into the Imperial Court. In 440, a group of pale ambassadors from a land they called Merenae approached the empire through the Mantis Clan. The gaijin bore an ancient banner of the Ki-Rin Clan and a story of the Moto coming to their homeland. Yugozohime decided to let these gaijin prove their worth, permitting them two years to stay within the empire and conduct limited trade. Unfortunately, after that time the Empress still had not come to accept the gaijin and they were asked to leave Rokugan. The gaijin refused, which led to the Battle of White Stag and the Battle of Raging Seas in 442. Secrets of the Unicorn, p. 9 During the battles, Yugozohime was near the shore directing the attack when a volley of captain Garen Hawthorne with his gaijin's roaring weapon was unleashed on her position. Prelude to Darkness, Part Three: The Gaijin, by Shawn Carman The Empress, Lion Clan Champion Akodo Kurojin, and all of the Akodo yojimbo protecting them were killed instantly. Yugozohime's uncle, Hantei Muhaki was called to lead the empire immediately thereafter. Way of the Lion, pp. 24-25 Rokugan, p. 186 Notable Events The following notable events occured during the reign of Hantei Yugozohime: * 435 - Breaking of the Gozoku * Unknown - Battle at Osari Plains * 440 - Gaijin admitted to the Imperial Court * 442 - Battle of Raging Seas, Battle of White Stag See also * Hantei Yugozohime/Meta Category:Imperial Leaders